Voting is Now Open for the Start Something Challenge Business Pitch Competition Semifinals

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30 New Jersey Entrepreneurs compete for $10,000 in the second round of Rising Tide Capital’s Start Something Challenge business pitch competition. Voting ends July 19th at noon.

Several SSC Semifinalists gather at the 4th Annual Kick-Off event in Newark, NJ

“Learning to ask for support and building a network around your business is critical for today’s entrepreneur.

Jersey City, NJ (PRWEB)July 14, 2015

July 14, 2015— Voting is now open for the semifinal round of Rising Tide Capital’s Start Something Challenge (SSC) business pitch competition. The 30 semifinalists’ videos will now be hosted on the Start Something Challenge website for public viewing and voting until Sunday, July 19 at noon. These 30 determined entrepreneurs advanced from an initial pool of 88 entrepreneurs from 38 cities across New Jersey. They learned of their progression in the competition last Wednesday at the 4th Annual SSC Kick-Off event in Newark, NJ.

“Now that the initial stages of the competition are complete, things start to get serious in the Start Something Challenge. Hopefully the participants have built a following around their participation, so that this next phase is easier for them, “said Esther Fraser, director of communications for Rising Tide Capital. “Learning to ask for support and building a network around your business is critical for today’s entrepreneur. The $30,000 we offer in cash and prizes are a pretty awesome incentive to get our competitors to lay the foundation for their business success.”

In the first round the entrepreneurs self-selected into one of five business sectors, and used the Animoto.com software to create 30-second videos describing their businesses. They promoted their videos with a variety of marketing tools, rallying their networks around their participation in the competition, which generated a total of 46,000 views. Only six entrepreneurs with the most Youtube video views from each sector progressed to the semifinal round.

The two entrepreneurs in each sector with the highest number of votes will advance to the finals, which will require participation in a live pitch event in Jersey City on July 28. The pitch event will feature a panel of expert judges who will determine the three cash prize winners to be recognized at the Start Something Champions Gala on November 5.